VEON Appoints Sebastian Rice as General Counsel
VEON (Nasdaq: VEON) announced leadership changes effective January 1, 2026. Sebastian Rice will join as General Counsel, succeeding Acting General Counsel Vitaly Shmakov, who is promoted to the newly created Chief Investment Officer role to lead mergers & acquisitions and the Group’s growth portfolio. Anand Ramachandran retains his role as Chief Corporate Development Officer with expanded investor relations and investor value creation responsibilities. Sebastian joins from Akin Gump after 24 years in senior roles including Partner-in-Charge of London and Geneva and Co-Head of Corporate Practice. CEO Kaan Terzioglu highlighted the moves as part of VEON’s digital operator transformation and growth agenda from its Dubai headquarters.
VEON (Nasdaq: VEON) ha annunciato cambi di leadership efficaci dal 1 gennaio 2026. Sebastian Rice entrerà come Consigliere Delegato, succedendo all'Acting General Counsel Vitaly Shmakov, che viene promosso al nuovo ruolo Chief Investment Officer per guidare fusioni e acquisizioni e il portafoglio di crescita del Gruppo. Anand Ramachandran mantiene il ruolo di Chief Corporate Development Officer con responsabilità ampliate di relazioni con gli investitori e creazione di valore per gli azionisti. Sebastian arriva da Akin Gump dopo 24 anni in ruoli senior tra cui Partner-in-Charge di Londra e Ginevra e Co-Head of Corporate Practice. Il CEO Kaan Terzioglu ha sottolineato le mosse come parte della trasformazione dell’operatore digitale di VEON e dell’agenda di crescita dalla sua sede di Dubai.
VEON (Nasdaq: VEON) anunció cambios en el liderazgo con efectos a partir de 1 de enero de 2026. Sebastian Rice se unirá como Asesor Jurídico General, sucediendo al General Counsel interino Vitaly Shmakov, quien es promovido al nuevo rol Chief Investment Officer para liderar fusiones y adquisiciones y la cartera de crecimiento del Grupo. Anand Ramachandran mantiene su cargo de Chief Corporate Development Officer con responsabilidades ampliadas de relaciones con inversores y creación de valor para los inversores. Sebastian se une desde Akin Gump tras 24 años en cargos senior, entre ellos Partner-in-Charge de Londres y Ginebra y Co-Head of Corporate Practice. El CEO Kaan Terzioglu destacó los cambios como parte de la transformación del operador digital de VEON y la agenda de crecimiento desde su sede en Dubai.
VEON(Nasdaq: VEON)이 1월 1일 2026년부터 효력이 있는 리더십 변경을 발표했습니다. Sebastian Rice가 General Counsel로 합류하며, 현 Acting General Counsel Vitaly Shmakov를 계승하고, Shmakov는 새로운 Chief Investment Officer 직책으로 승진하여 합병·인수 및 그룹의 성장 포트폴리오를 이끌게 됩니다. Anand Ramachandran은 Chief Corporate Development Officer로서의 역할을 유지하며 투자자 관계 및 투자자 가치 창출 책임이 확대됩니다. Sebastian은 Akin Gump에서 24년간 런던 및 제네바의 파트너 인-차지, 기업 실무 공동 책임자 등의 고위 직책을 역임한 뒤 합류합니다. CEO Kaan Terzioglu는 두바이 본사를 통해 VEON의 디지털 운용자 변혁 및 성장 의제의 일환으로 이러한 움직임을 강조했습니다.
VEON (Nasdaq: VEON) a annoncé des changements de gouvernance effectifs à compter du 1er janvier 2026. Sebastian Rice rejoindra le poste de General Counsel, succédant au General Counsel par intérim Vitaly Shmakov, qui est promu au nouveau rôle de Chief Investment Officer afin de diriger les fusions et acquisitions et le portefeuille de croissance du Groupe. Anand Ramachandran conserve son rôle de Chief Corporate Development Officer avec des responsabilités élargies en matière de relations investisseurs et de création de valeur pour les investisseurs. Sebastian rejoint Akin Gump après 24 ans dans des postes de haut niveau, notamment Partner-in-Charge de Londres et Genève et Co-Head of Corporate Practice. Le PDG Kaan Terzioglu a souligné ces mouvements comme faisant partie de la transformation de VEON en opérateur numérique et de l'agenda de croissance depuis son siège à Dubaï.
VEON (Nasdaq: VEON) hat personelle Veränderungen bekannt gegeben, die ab dem 1. Januar 2026 in Kraft treten. Sebastian Rice wird als General Counsel eintreten und den Interim General Counsel Vitaly Shmakov ablösen, der in die neu geschaffene Position Chief Investment Officer befördert wird, um Fusionen & Akquisitionen und das Wachstumsportfolio der Gruppe zu leiten. Anand Ramachandran behält seine Rolle als Chief Corporate Development Officer mit erweiterten Verantwortlichkeiten für Investor Relations und den Wertschöpfungsbeitrag für Investoren. Sebastian kommt von Akin Gump nach 24 Jahren in leitenden Positionen, darunter Partner-in-Charge von London und Genf sowie Co-Head of Corporate Practice. CEO Kaan Terzioglu hob die Bewegungen als Teil der Transformation von VEON zum digitalen Betreiber und der Wachstumsagenda vom Dubai-Hauptsitz aus hervor.
VEON (ناسداك: VEON) أعلنت عن تغييرات قيادية ستدخل حيز التنفيذ اعتبارًا من 1 يناير 2026. سينضم سيباستيان رايس إلى المنصب كالمستشار العام، ليحل محل المستشار العام المؤقت فيتالي شماكوڤ، الذي ترقى إلى المنصب الجديد كبير مسؤولي الاستثمار لقيادة عمليات الدمج والاستحواذ ومحفظة نمو المجموعة. حافظ أناند راماشندران على دوره كـ كبير مسؤولي تطوير الشركات بواجبات موسّعة في العلاقات مع المستثمرين وتوليد قيمة الاستثمار. ينضم سيباستيان من Akin Gump بعد 24 عامًا في مناصب عليا بما في ذلك Partner-in-Charge في لندن وجنيف وCo-Head of Corporate Practice. وأكد الرئيس التنفيذي كاان تيرزيولو أن هذه التحركات جزء من تحول VEON إلى مشغل رقمي وبرنامج النمو من مقرّه في دبي.
- Effective date: January 1, 2026 for all appointments
- Sebastian Rice brings 24 years of corporate and leadership experience at Akin Gump
- Vitaly Shmakov to lead M&A and growth portfolio as Chief Investment Officer
- Anand Ramachandran given expanded investor relations and value-creation remit
- None.
Vitaly Shmakov promoted to the newly created Chief Investment Officer role
Dubai, November 6, 2025: VEON Ltd. (Nasdaq: VEON), a global digital operator (“VEON” or the “Group”), today announces the appointment of Sebastian Rice as General Counsel of the Group, effective January 1, 2026. Sebastian will succeed the Group’s Acting General Counsel Vitaly Shmakov, who has been appointed as Chief Investment Officer, leading the Group’s mergers & acquisitions function.
Anand Ramachandran, VEON’s Chief Corporate Development Officer, will continue in his current role with expanded investor relations and investor value creation responsibilities, also effective January 1, 2026.
Sebastian joins VEON from Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP, where he has worked for the past 24 years. His most recent roles include Partner-in-Charge of the firm’s London and Geneva offices and Co-Head of the Corporate Practice.
“I am excited to take on the role of General Counsel at VEON Group, an organization I hold in the highest regard, having worked closely with the team for many years. I look forward to joining VEON’s growing headquarters in Dubai, and to contributing to the Group’s growth agenda as VEON advances its digital operator transformation,” said Sebastian Rice.
“We look forward to welcoming Sebastian to the VEON Leadership Team starting January 1, 2026. We are also delighted to announce the appointments of Vitaly and Anand to their new and expanded roles. Sebastian’s experience will be invaluable as VEON continues its digital operator transformation across the exciting frontier markets that we serve. Vitaly moves into his new role after nearly a decade within VEON across legal and M&A functions, and will be driving our growth portfolio with value-accretive transactions. Anand will lead our deepening investor engagement as we expand our work with capital markets across multiple geographies, as the largest Nasdaq-listed company with a Dubai headquarters, and the parent of Kyivstar, another Nasdaq-listed company,” said VEON Group CEO Kaan Terzioglu.
About VEON
VEON is a digital operator that provides services to more than 150 million connectivity customers and about 120 million monthly active digital users. Operating across five countries that are home to more than
Forward-Looking Statements
This release contains “forward-looking statements”, as the phrase is defined in U.S. securities laws. The forward-looking statements in this release, including those related to VEON’s strategic and operational plans, growth and M&A initiatives and management structuring, involve risks, uncertainties and other factors which could cause actual results and performance to differ materially from those expressed by such statements. These risks include those relating to uncertainty over success of our strategic initiatives, among others discussed in our Annual Report on Form 20-F filed on April 25, 2025. The forward-looking statements contained herein speak only as of the date of this release and VEON disclaims any obligation to update them, except as required by U.S. federal securities laws.
Contact Information
Hande Asik
Group Director of Communications
pr@veon.com
FAQ
When does Sebastian Rice start as General Counsel at VEON (Nasdaq: VEON)?
What role will Vitaly Shmakov hold at VEON after January 1, 2026?
What experience does Sebastian Rice bring to the VEON General Counsel role?
How will Anand Ramachandran’s responsibilities change at VEON (VEON)?
Why did VEON say it made these leadership changes on November 6, 2025?
Will the leadership changes affect VEON’s M&A activity?
